Cash, card, or bitcoin? How about bitcoin card? The bitcoin payment card from Xapo, which will resemble other payment cards in form and function, is set to launch at the end of June, according to the company. A wrench in adoption could be the card-processing fees the card will be subject to. The objection would not be so much practical as ideological — the idea behind Bitcoin is to remove middlemen and the fees they charge. Merchants will shoulder the fees. Users will pay no processing fees, as with traditional cards. News of the card broke in April, and cryptocurrency enthusiasts hailed the card as a new, convenient way to spend bitcoins. Unlike previous bitcoin cards, the Xapo card debits funds directly from the user’s bitcoin wallet, which makes for as seamless an experience as traditional payment cards. Xapo, a bitcoin wallet startup, received $20 million from Benchmark, Fortress Investment and Ribbit Capital to support the launch. The card will have a magstripe and cost $15. Bitstamp will convert the bitcoins from the users’ wallets to dollars for the merchants’ bank account. There is no word yet on EMV Xapo cards. Xapo began as a secure bitcoin wallet, with insured […]
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